Heading into Super Bowl Sunday, the Philadelphia Eagles find themselves in their proverbial role as the underdogs. After falling short two years ago, Jalen Hurts now has the opportunity to embody that Rocky-esque spirit and exercise his demons against Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs.
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With Saquon Barkley now at his disposal, this may potentially be the best shot he’ll ever have at winning a Lombardi trophy. And, with A.J. Brown and company still in tow, he’s well enough equipped to take on the fight of his life.
However, some are not willing to encourage his approach to take Mahomes head on. In particular, the Eagles former star running back, LeSean McCoy, went out of his way to advise Hurts that he should approach this matchup with caution and finesse. In suggesting that signal caller not go “blow-for-blow” with Mahomes, the two-time Super Bowl champion mentioned;
“That’s not how we play… We don’t play like that. We go through Saquon Barkley and good defense. And Jalen Hurts making some plays and defense getting turnovers. That’s how we play. We don’t do blow-for-blows. That’s not Philadelphia Eagles football.”
Describing the turnover success that the Eagles’ defense had in the NFC Championship against the Washington Commanders as “the difference in that game,” McCoy fears that a change in the recipe could spell disaster for Philadelphia.
LeSean says not to “complicate things” and suggests what the Eagles should do to win the Super Bowl
In Shady’s defense, Russell Wilson was the only quarterback in the playoffs to have fewer passing yards than Hurts throughout the 2024 regular season. Hoping that Eagles air on the side of caution, he doesn’t want to see the Alabama product try to play hero ball.
“If I throw one blow and we win, that’s all I need. Let’s get this ball to 26, let’s not complicate things… I don’t want us to get to this big game and we start doing different things. Let’s start with 26, let’s finish with 26.”
Ultimately, McCoy fears that Hurts may not have the ability to out-duel Mahomes. “Keep Patty on the sidelines, eat the clock up. I don’t want to go blow for blow.” Considering that the Chiefs’ back-to-back champion is enjoying a better start to his career than Tom Brady, that’s completely understandable.
While it’s worth noting that Hurts tallied 374 offensive yards and four total touchdowns at Super Bowl LVII, Philadelphia is unlikely to have him attempt 38 passes again. With the rushing attack now bolstered by the best running back in the league, McCoy should get his wish of seeing Barkley running well and often on Sunday.
